Epimetheus - Saturn's Moons Slideshow

Here is the last of the three asteroid-like moons we will highlight in the slide show. Epimetheus is about 116 kilometers across and was first seen by Voyager when that spacecraft passed Saturn decades ago.

The color of Epimetheus appears to vary across the different facets of the moon's irregular surface. Usually, color changes of planetary surfaces show differences in the chemical composition of surface materials. However, difference in surface color can also be caused by differences in the way a particular material reflects light at different lighting angles. The color variation in this false-color view suggests these "photometric effects" because the surface appears to have a blue color in areas where sunlight strikes the surface at greater angles.

The slightly reddish feature in the lower left is a crater named Pollux. The large crater just below center is Hilairea, which has a diameter of about 33 kilometers (21 miles).